Reducing Expectation
by Tabi
Summary: Disappearance!verse. The arrival of a transfer student to Kouyouen Academy sparks Haruhi's interest.


The door to the classroom slid open with a _bang_, surprising everyone; the surprise diminished for all but one person in the classroom as the cause was identified, as she strode into the classroom and up to the desk with no care nor regard for what anyone there thought of her.

"You're the new transfer student, right?!" Hands slammed down onto the desk. Koizumi sat back as far as he could in his chair, unsure as to what to make of this; the girl was attractive, surely, but it was hard to concentrate on, really, anything other than her explicit manner at that time. Those eyes, intense and shining and _more than a little desperate_. The way she leant in, unperturbed and unafraid. The way the other students parted for her _and the way her hair fell forward_-

"I-... y-yes, that's... correct..."

"Come with me." Without even making an introduction, she had him by the wrist _then by the hand_ as she pulled him up from his seat and away from the classroom. Nobody stopped them, and everybody heard the whispers.

_It's been a while, hasn't it? Since she last acted out._

_Poor guy. Doesn't know what he's in for._

_Poor guy? Poor Suzumiya, more like. What does she expect? He's just some guy from out of town._

_Maybe she thinks it's her last chance for something 'weird' to happen? Someone should warn him. I wouldn't want the responsibility of being Suzumiya's last hope._

She walked with such purpose that Koizumi found it hard to keep up, but for the tight and determined hold around his fingers. They walked beyond the crowds and past the whispers, to the corner of a corridor leading up to the roof where no-one would have any reason to go. There, she stopped. She turned around, letting go of Koizumi's hand but then taking him by the shoulders, instead. She stood shorter than he did, but he found himself incapable of movement - pinned fast and disarmed by the look in her eyes. The expression on her face. The slightly uncomfortable way she gripped at him. He swallowed, his throat feeling dry. He couldn't prevent the uncertain tone in his voice.

"What... do you want...?"

"I have no interest in ordinary people."

_Unexpected_. "... Right...?"

"If you've transferred in at this time of the school year..." She glanced downward, fraught and distracted. "There's something strange about that. A transfer student at this time of year, that's-... that's really strange-!"

_It's not that strange_. "... Is it...?"

"... Brought here by somebody, or... or _looking_ for somebody, or..." She seemed to be in her own world now, clinging to Koizumi without looking at him. She seemed to catch herself after a moment, looking at her hands and then letting them fall. She stood a step backward and straightened her pose, clearing her throat.

"_Ahem_. My name is Suzumiya Haruhi. I hope we can be friends from now on."

This current declaration seemed to have nothing to do with her previous outbursts, but Koizumi supposed it was all he could do to try to keep up with her (unpredictable) pace. She bowed as she spoke, then stood with her eyes closed; Koizumi took those moments of silence following to look at this girl, really _look_ at her. And she opened her eyes, looking at him and _expecting_.

"Oh! Oh, I'm... I'm Koizumi Itsuki. Very pleased to meet you... I hope for the same. I hope I'll be able to settle in without too much difficulty."

"... Koizumi-kun."

"-... Yes?"

"It's alright, you can tell me. If you tell me why you're here, I promise I won't tell anybody else. But if you have to tell somebody, please tell me." She still stood straight, while Koizumi stood at a loss. How could you react to something like _that_...? It already seemed obvious that the answer - the normal, boring, uninteresting answer - wouldn't please her. And for some reason, Koizumi felt that he _wanted_ to please her. This strange girl, with her passion and intensity. For better or for worse, it was the first time Koizumi had been approached in such a manner - though, he couldn't help but think that very few people had been approached in _exactly_ this manner. The cold and rational part of his mind told him that she was unusual at best and delusional at worst, and such people were worth keeping a distance from. At the same time, another part of him... pitied her? He wasn't sure he liked that term for his emotions, but couldn't find any other way to describe the feeling. She wanted something, and she seemed to want _him_. And he surely wasn't what she was looking for, but who _could_ be...? A mix of pity for her cause, whatever that was, and admiration for her actions. She certainly didn't seem afraid to act on her feelings, incomprehensible as they may have been.

"If I truly had something to hide, wouldn't it be awfully conspicuous of me to just tell anybody who asked?"

Confusion flickered across her brow, just for a moment. "Well-..."

"And also, Suzumiya-san, you haven't really answered my question...!" Koizumi wasn't sure where this confident tone was coming from. He honestly wasn't feeling it, but what he _was_ feeling was the inescapable temptation to play along with... whatever it was was there for playing with in the first place. "What do you want from me?"

"A transfer student at this time of the year is _definitely_ strange. So you have to be a mysterious transfer student. You _have_ to be."

Her words left no space for argument. "... I see."

Koizumi knew, however, that he held little about him that was mysterious. He was here because his father had got an unexpected promotion at work, that was all. It had all worked out quite nicely - the promotion was appreciated and Kouyouen was a good school, so they'd both seemed to have landed on their feet. And now here he was, at the recommended Kouyouen Academy, and... on his first day, he was cornered by this girl. And the sensible thing here, he knew, would have been to step out of the situation - explain calmly, without being patronising, that he was nothing exceptional and that his transfer was only, really, a matter of circumstance. That would have been _sensible_. However, this did not seem to be a word in this girl's vocabulary, and there was something... _enticing_ about that, somehow. Despite the brief time they'd spent together, Koizumi already felt that while he didn't want to string her along, he also didn't want to disappoint her, either.

Perhaps that disappointment was inevitable, but perhaps it could be softened. Perhaps they could, beyond and apart from everything, at least form some sort of a friendship.

He felt, for a moment, the whims of his world turning on those of the girl stood in front of him. He bowed.

"... I hope I can be what you're looking for, Suzumiya-san."

He looked up, hoping to see her smile. She didn't, but there was some resigned form of acceptance in her expression. She narrowed her eyes, as if assessing, and then took him by the arm once again. "We'll see about that. Come on."

Koizumi thought to ask where they were going, but realised that he simply didn't care.


End file.
